Athletic director Peg Bradley-Doppes of the University of Denver knows the kind of athletic department she wants. And she’s very happy with the results she’s getting.

The latest figures supplied by the country’s college athletic directors in the form of the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup shows that the Pioneers rank 43rd among 290 athletic departments nationally but first among Division I schools that don’t play football. The 17 men’s and women’s sports at DU have compiled 519.25 points in a complicated formula based on how well each sport performs in its conference.

Providence is the closest school to DU that doesn’t have a football team, ranking 69th. (Points earned for baseball have yet to be logged for the 2013-14 school year.)

Colorado ranks 37th, Air Force 84th and Colorado State 112th.

“We only have 17 programs compared to 27 programs that some schools have,” Bradley-Doppes said. “That makes us very targeted and we have to bring our A-game to every competition.

“Our program earned points this year from 16 of the 17 sports. It’s important that an institution that doesn’t have football can show this kind of success.”

DU’s success in athletics is bolstered in the classroom by a graduation rate among its student-athletes that is above 91 percent, Bradley-Doppes said. The student body at DU is comprised of about 5,000 undergraduates and 5,000 who are enrolled in graduate school.

While the DU athletic department is doing well, Bradley-Doppes sees some critical questions on the horizon for all of college athletics.

Questions about whether student- athletes should be paid, and the possibility that the major schools in the power conferences might pull away from the existing NCAA governance, are all being debated.

“We will not pay a stipend to our athletes no matter what happens,” Bradley-Doppes said. “Our athletes come here to get a degree and to compete at a high level. Our teams expect to be successful, but within a balance of athletics and academics.”

As for the power five conferences, Bradley-Doppes wonders whether all of those schools would be happy if they pulled away and formed their own organization.

“Even in those conferences there would be the haves and the have-nots,” she said. “There are times when leaders of institutions have to demonstrate strong leadership. I don’t think college sports ever should become a feeder program for pro sports. We need to weigh what’s best for the entire institution.”

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